


A Leap of Faith (well caught)

by Talinor



Series: Keitor Week 2017 [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: First Meeting, Implied/Referenced Non-Consentual Drug Use, M/M, Nothing bad happens besides the roofies don't worry, Recovery, Roofies, Threat of Rape
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-31
Updated: 2017-10-31
Packaged: 2019-01-27 03:57:22
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12573192
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talinor/pseuds/Talinor
Summary: Keitor Week- Day 3: Free DayThe stranger looked at him with a hint of confusion and suspicion, which only increased when Lotor held his arms and planted a chaste kiss on both his cheeks. On the side his follower couldn't see, Lotor leaned closer until his lips were by the stranger's ear."'Pologies," he slurred quietly. "But I believe the man followin' me back there," he saw the stranger glance over for a second subtly. "drugged my drink. My friends are busy an' I don' want to lead him to where I live. I know this soundscrazy,but could you pretend to be my boyfrien' for a little while?"





	A Leap of Faith (well caught)

**Author's Note:**

> I know this is early, but I have school and I'd rather not upload this at like 6 am like I did with day 2's fic  
> So this was a free day for halloween so naturally, I wanted to do something at least unsettling, if not terrifying  
> This was the first idea that popped in my mind and I couldn't stop writing it  
> Be mindful of the tags and enjoy!

Lotor had always _adored_ Vakerran's night life. 

 

During the day, it was simply a quiet little colony. There was nothing special or truly memorable about it. That was all well and good enough for him. He could handle the quiet serenity. It was a nice remote place to hide away and blend into the crowd, a place to go if you needed to disappear for whatever reason. Plenty of honest little job opportunities, pleasant shops, and friendly people.

 

But once the sun slunk down into the ash white and shining steel horizon, that all underwent a change. One he couldn't help but revel in whenever it happened. Most of the pleasant shops closed down for the night and turned into nightclubs of varying degrees. The friendly people were still quite so, but they weren't as quiet or withdrawn as their sun-out counterparts.

 

It was always a wonderfully chaotic sea of flashing lights and moving bodies, one Lotor and his friends usually joined quite happily almost every evening. It was a way to unwind, a cathartic purging of any negativity from the previous day, and a wonderful way to meet new people. Not to mention the opportunity to stay just a face in the crowd.

 

After all, you can't stand out to anyone if you stay in. That was always the way he saw it. On Vakerran, it was weirder to stay in by yourself all night rather than going out and doing _something_ with this blessed time.

 

This night started out like most of the others- going about club to club in a carefree high surrounded by his dearest friends. They'd all been especially rowdy, for it was Ezor's birthday. Anything she wanted that night, they'd at least try to get. No qualms about it, no questions asked. That was all their standards for any of their birthdays.

 

Ezor wanted to ride around town in an elongated fancy car from Earth? Done. They all put money towards renting the best one they could possibly find.

 

Ezor wanted a rare bottle of wine from her homeworld? Done. It barely cost anything to Lotor- dear Father hadn't found out about his backup GAC account yet. It had enough money to last the rest of his life, even if he didn't add his weekly paychecks to it.

 

Ezor wanted a long leather jacket and a new shirt from her favorite shop? Done, albeit illegally. It was closed by the time they got there. Zethrid had to kick in the back door for access, Acxa hacked into the cameras so they wouldn't be seen, leaving Lotor and Narti to sneak in and snatch the stuff she wanted. They left enough money to pay for either article on top of the suddenly vacant spots before they left, so it arguably wasn't stealing.

 

That night, they'd all been loving life. Ezor especially- she was practically _shining_ like a supernova all her own from the same ecstatic high they'd all been feeling. In those hours, he felt like they were invincible. _Immortal,_ so long as this night never truly ended. It was a haze of rowdy conversation, dancing, and keeping an eye out for any creep on the prowl for a seemingly-vulnerable target.

 

That wasn't to say any of his friends wouldn't be perfectly capable of defending themselves and kicking ass if need be, even if they were drunk out of their minds. He knew that from personal experience. But he still wished to be careful, just in case. If someone talking to one of his friends was getting her a free drink, he watched them carefully. Mainly to make sure they didn't add anything to it. If anything seemed suspicious, he wouldn't hesitate to butt in and stop something awful before it ever even happened.

 

It was as mutual in their friend group as their little birthday rule. Anything was acceptable as long as it got whoever was in trouble out of it as fast as possible. He couldn't count how many times he'd acted as each of their boyfriend just to get them away from some knucklehead. Or vice versa. Especially Zethrid, who easily just _carried him out of the situation._

 

Thankfully though, he hadn't needed to at all tonight. Probably cause they all stuck together at whatever club they went to. If Ezor wanted to hang out at the bar at one, they hung out at the bar. If she wanted to spend their entire time at another on the dancefloor, that's exactly what they did. It was her night, after all. Her rules.

 

As the hours went on, the night got more and more hazy. Acxa left with Ezor first, per the birthday girl's slurred request. She'd rolled her eyes as Ezor practically draped herself on Acxa, but he knew her well enough to know she didn't mind it in the slightest. Narti went soon after, her cat growing increasingly harder to keep awake in order for her to see. Zethrid went with her too, mainly to be her eyes in case Kova fell asleep. Lotor considered going with them, but decided to have just one more drink.

 

Which was definitely a mistake. A potentially grave mistake.

 

Ever since he'd taken that one final shot, he kept seeing the same figure a few feet behind him in the corner of his eye. Following him wherever he went, even after he headed out of the club to finally go back home. 

 

He couldn't see much of their face without making it too obvious that he was looking at them, but he noticed two things- one, that their skin was dark purple. Potentially Galra. And two, that they harbored the most unsettling smile he'd ever had the displeasure of even taking a peek at.

 

At first, Lotor wasn't entirely sure why they were smiling. What could _cause_ something like that?

 

Then the effects of his drink started to kick in his system. He started to feel _much_ too lightheaded and woozy to be natural with how little he'd drank overall. His skin started to heat up despite the cool fall night breeze through the streets. 

 

Naturally, part of him started to panic. He was stranded- none of his friends around to help him, and too busy at the moment to swoop in to the rescue last minute. It was still too early to hop on the twilight-tram and hopefully lose the person tailing him. He couldn't stop, but he also certainly couldn't show his unwanted visitor exactly where he lived.

 

Lotor needed to come up with an escape plan, and _fast._ It might not be long until he was unable to get away- a truly frightening thought to process. It took him a few much too long seconds to push that fear down and instead focus on anything that could potentially help him get out of this. Part of him silently prayed for a divine intervention- a saving grace of some kind to avoid the fate that made his heart give pause just to think about.

 

That saving grace came in a young man about Lotor's age parking his red and white hoverbike just a few yards in front of Lotor.

 

His unkempt raven hair was barely even remotely tamed by the hair tie keeping it back. A red and white leather jacket was tied around his waist, showing off a lithe and lean-muscled frame. Especially the arms- left completely uncovered due to the man's white tank top decorated with outlines of a red lion on the right and a starry dark purple one on the left. His dark gray jeans were faded and ripped at the knees, obviously very old. As were his dark brown laced-up combat boots.

 

Hopefully, he'd do. It wasn't like Lotor could really be picky at this point. At least this stranger wasn't too hard on the eyes.

 

He swaggered up to the stranger with absolute confidence, forcing down the sea of turmoil churning about in his stomach. It felt like his heart was irregularly beating faster and faster in his chest. Almost like it was trying to claw its way out of it, removing itself from the situation just like he was going to try and do.

 

Especially when the stranger noticed Lotor walking up to him. His eyes were unlike anything Lotor had ever seen- steely, piercing, and utterly _captivating._ Almost like an one-of-a-kind blade. It was likely the drugs kicking things up in his system, or at least the majority of the reason, but those eyes definitely _weren't_ helping his... growing situation down under.

 

He managed to suppress most of it by the time he finally stumbled up to the stranger with an easy smile. _"Darling!"_ He said affectionately, as if they were quite familiar with each other. He managed to stave off most of the slurring. It felt strange to talk openly in this... _state,_ so he went for a different approach.

 

The stranger looked at him with a hint of confusion and suspicion, which only increased when Lotor held his arms and planted a chaste kiss on both his cheeks. On the side his follower couldn't see, Lotor leaned closer until his lips were by the stranger's ear.

 

"'Pologies," he slurred quietly. "But I believe the man followin' me back there," he saw the stranger glance over for a second subtly. "drugged my drink. My friends are busy an' I don' want to lead him to where I live. I know this sounds _crazy,_ but could you pretend to be my boyfrien' for a little while?"

 

The stranger simply stared at him for a few seconds. Blank. Unreadable. The sea in his stomach churned sharply, easily turning into a whirlpool of panic. If this didn't work, what else could he really do?

 

And then the stranger smiled. His brightened eyes shone beautifully in the soft multicolored neon streetlights. He wrapped his arms around Lotor, resting on the overheated skin under the hem of his vibrant long-sleeved crop top. The cool leather of his gloves felt... oddly pleasant. He nodded a little bit, then finally spoke.

 

"It took you long enough to get here," he teased lightly. Lotor had to suppress a shiver at the rough yet soothing voice he hadn't really expected to hear. "Come on," the stranger moved one of his arms off Lotor to gesture toward a quaint little pet shop a few yards away. "That's the place I wanted to show you." He started walking gently, keeping both of his strong and steady hands on Lotor to steady him.

 

Lotor let out a little sigh of relief. He settled into the more familiar grounds with ease, slipping into his little role as easily as he could manage in his current state. He tried his best to walk on his own, or at least pull his weight, but that was easier said than done. He could barely even _feel_ his heavy legs, let alone _move them._ He found himself pressing against the stranger more and more with every few steps, relying on his strength bit by bit until he couldn't even feel his legs anymore.

 

Thankfully that was around the time they got to the pet shop's door. It was a quaint and cozy- looking little Altean joint, completely opposite of the name neatly written in vibrant electric blue above the doors and elongated front windows- Castle of Lions. The lights inside were dim, but the open sign in the window still glowed proudly. He could see one employee inside- an older-looking Altean man with combed back fiery orange hair and handlebar moustache streaked with occasional silvery white.

 

The stranger knocked on the window to get the man's attention. "Coran!" He called. "Let us in!" Lotor checked behind him to see his stalker getting closer. He could still see the grin on their face- predatory and almost animalistic, like he couldn't wait to tear his claws into his weakened prey. His grip on the stranger tightened worriedly.

 

The employee, apparently named Coran, looked to the two of them for a split second in surprise. Realization dawned in his eyes as soon as they landed on Lotor. He hurriedly rushed to the sleek little counter a few feet away from his original spot in the aquatic product aisle and pressed a little button by the cash register. 

 

The door's lock clicked, and the stranger opened it to quickly lead the two of them inside. As soon as the door closed, the lock clicked back into place. A handy little security mechanism.

 

"It happened again," the stranger told Coran, gently leading Lotor along down the long shimmering aisles. "Don't let the Galra in the trench coat in, they're tailing this guy. Roofied him first."

 

Coran looked Lotor over in concern. "Oh, you poor _thing,"_ he said, voice filled with a tired sadness. Likely due to how many times the man has probably done this. "Can you still speak? What's your name, my boy?"

 

Lotor nodded weakly. "Hard to focus," he said, tongue feeling heavy and foreign in his own mouth. "Name's Lotor."

 

"Well Lotor," Coran said, moving closer to examine him. "Judging from your features, I'd say you're..." His eyes narrowed for a second. "A half-Galran, half-Altean." He quirked up a brow. "Am I correct in my observation?"

 

Lotor nodded once again. The room swam and blurred, only making him more nauseous. The stranger was his only port in the storm raging around him, and he clung to that much-needed stability desperately. Thankfully, he understood that and kept his own grip on Lotor gentle but steady.

 

"Judging from the degree and growing intensity of the effects on you," Coran said. "I'd say this is probably from a bit of fermented keli powder." He looked over to the stranger. "Nothing to do but ride it out and keep 'im cool for a few hours until it all purges out with the alcohol. Keith, you know where to go." He gestured to a thin door outline a few feet from the counter. It was hidden from view from the front window, covered from sight by a shelf of various cat foods. "Door's always open for ya."

 

"Thanks, Coran," the stranger- _Keith-_ said. He looked over to Lotor. "You have any business to attend to in a few hours or so, Lotor?"

 

He shook his head. "Not really," he slurred. "Jus' text my friends. Comm's in back pocket of my shorts." Keith pulled it out gingerly. "Tell 'em what happened. Let 'em know I'm okay."

 

"I will," Keith assured, starting to lead/half-carry Lotor to the door. "But first, let's get you lying down." Coran pressed a button on a little chrome remote and the beeped in confirmation. "Can't keep you hydrated and stuff if I have to carry you everywhere."

 

The door slid open for them as they got close to it, revealing a small and... oddly comfortable looking room. A long plush-looking couch ran almost the entire length of it, stopping only for a pretty sizable refrigerator and water dispenser. A counter and cabinet stood next to and above it, lined with various pill bottles of varying size, shape, and color. Not the worst place he'd ever spent the night. Not at all.

 

Keith led him and lay him down safely on the couch, which was definitely as comfortable as it had initially looked. He got an extra pillow and put it under Lotor's head, taking a few seconds to put his long hair over it at the end. "I'll be back soon with a cool towel and a wastebasket for you," he said softly, reaching for Lotor's hand. "If you need anything at all, call out. Coran, his goddaughter Allura, or I will get it for you."

 

Lotor smiled fondly up at the man. "Y've barely known me for half an hour," he said teasingly. "And yer already better than most of my past romantic partners." He giggled at the thought, bubbly happiness rising up through his system suddenly. Maybe another effect of his unpleasant surprise. Maybe a genuine reaction to pure kindness. He didn't know which it really was, and at the moment he didn't really find himself caring much. 

 

Keith smiled. "Then you've had some shitty partners," he said, squeezing Lotor's hand reassuringly. "And I'm sorry for that." He stood up fully, slipping easily out of Lotor's needy but weakened grasp. "I'll be back soon."

 

It was hard to watch the man leave, but it was almost worth it just to watch him walk away.

 

The passing few hours were... rocky, at best. It took quite a while to purge it all out of his system. Yet whenever he was hunched over the edge of the couch, face buried in his provided wastebasket, Keith was there to hold his hair back. When Lotor groaned as a wave of uncomfortable needs rocked through him, Keith was there to soothe him with a few soft words. When Lotor wanted more water or a cooler towel for his enflamed and heavily sweaty skin, Keith would always provide it. He barely even saw or heard Coran or Allura in those hours. It was nearly all Keith.

 

Finally after what felt like a chaotic eternity, the effects slowly passed. They disappeared from his system entirely. The thick fog in his mind thinned out until it was fully cleared. He was finally ready to go home, comm device full of concerned texts and missed phone calls.

 

"I really must thank you again," Lotor said, taking a hand of Keith's into both his own. "I don't even want to _think_ about what might've happened if you hadn't helped me." He shuddered at the mere thought. "...But I really must repay you somehow for it." He raised a brow. "What would you like?"

 

Keith smiled, placing his unused hand atop Lotor's. "Trust me," he assured. "I didn't do it for a reward, and I don't need any payment for basic decency. Just be a bit more careful, okay?"

 

"Of course," Lotor nodded in understanding. "But after all you did to help me, I really do wish to pay you back for it somehow." He moved closer to Keith, letting his voice dip into a sultry purr. "Perhaps something special?"

 

"Oh?" Keith... surprisingly played along with it. His voice sounded even nicer while imitating Lotor's purr. "What would you suggest?"

 

"How about a date?" He offered. "Anything you wish to do, anywhere you wish to go on Vakerran. All paid for by me, of course." He shrugged, leaning even closer. "And who knows?" He only stopped when their lips were barely a hair apart. "Maybe even a chance to make our little act a reality?" He raised a brow. "What do you say, _darling?"_

 

Keith considered that for a moment. "...Yeah," his blooming smile was infectious. "I think I'd like that, Lotor."

**Author's Note:**

> comments are always appreciated!  
> my tumblr: squishy--squish


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